Obama Defers to Bush, for Now, on Gaza Crisis  —  WASHINGTON — When President-elect Barack Obama went to Israel in July — to the very town, in fact, whose repeated shelling culminated in this weekend's new fighting in Gaza — he all but endorsed the punishing Israeli attacks now unfolding.

Study: ‘Virginity pledges’ are ineffective  —  Youths who promise abstinence are also less likely to use protection  —  Teenagers who pledge to remain virgins until marriage are just as likely to have premarital sex as those who do not promise abstinence and are significantly less likely …

RNC members call unprecedented special meeting  —  For the first time in party history, members of the Republican National Committee have called their own unscheduled meeting without the aid of the Washington-based party apparatus.  —  Organized by North Dakota Republican Party chairman Gary Emineth …

My Response to the Mean-Spirited “Barack the Magic Negro”  —  The sending of a Christmas greeting by Chip Saltsman to the members of the Republican National Committee that includes a recording of the so-called parody, “Barack the Magic Negro” is not only offensive, it is shocking and saddening in the extreme.

TV News Winds Down Operations on Iraq War  —  Quietly, as the United States presidential election and its aftermath have dominated the news, America's three broadcast network news divisions have stopped sending full-time correspondents to Iraq.  —  “The war has gone on longer than a lot …

Under Bush, OSHA Mired in Inaction  —  In early 2001, an epidemiologist at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration sought to publish a special bulletin warning dental technicians that they could be exposed to dangerous beryllium alloys while grinding fillings.

Fifty Herbert Hoovers  —  No modern American president would repeat the fiscal mistake of 1932, in which the federal government tried to balance its budget in the face of a severe recession.  The Obama administration will put deficit concerns on hold while it fights the economic crisis.

As if Things Weren't Bad Enough, Russian Professor Predicts End of U.S.  —  In Moscow, Igor Panarin's Forecasts Are All the Rage; America ‘Disintegrates’ in 2010  —  MOSCOW — For a decade, Russian academic Igor Panarin has been predicting the U.S. will fall apart in 2010.

George, Abe, Rick & Barack  —  I'm leaving the country the day of Barack Obama's inauguration.  —  It's nothing personal.  Nor, I hasten to add — lest some people get too excited — is it anything permanent.  It's just that I happen to have a speech to give in Canada.

Blagojevich's lawyer to submit internal report to impeachment panel  —  SPRINGFIELD — Gov. Blagojevich's lawyer Monday intends to submit President-elect Barack Obama's internal report to a House impeachment panel as evidence the governor wasn't trying to enrich himself while deciding who to appoint to Illinois' vacant U.S. Senate seat.

Dueling Information Operations  —  Yesterday, in the “Flies in Amber” post, I put up the story about the suicide bombing in Khowst, and chose to make it a discussion of viewpoint, outlook, and will.  The fact that CJTF-101 PAO put the story out so quickly was clearly intended to get out in front …

A Chill on ‘The Guardian’  —  Among all the postmortems that will inevitably follow the dramatic implosion of the global financial system, there will doubtless be one on how it was covered in the press.  Was there sufficient information in the public domain about the dangers of financial derivatives and subprime mortgages?

Skaters Jump In as Foreclosures Drain the Pool  —  On a recent morning, a 27-year-old skateboarder who goes by the name Josh Peacock peered into a swimming pool in Fresno, Calif., emptied by his own hands — and the foreclosure crisis — and flashed a smile as wide as a half-pipe.